A beam of light scattered the clouds, brightened the sky and appeared out of nowhere. Whatever the source, it had to be powerful, at least that's what a certain banished prince concluded.
"Finally!" Zuko turned around to face his Uncle, who had been sitting at a small table playing a game using tiles by himself, "Uncle, do you realise what this means?"
"I won't get to finish my game?" Iroh replied who appeared to not be interested.
"It means my search is about to come to an end." Zuko scoffed, turning around to face the impressive light source.
Iroh continued to play his game, trying to hide the troubled expression that slowly grew on his face.
"You must realise, that light came from an incredibly powerful source!" Zuko pointed at the light, "It has to be him!"
Iroh sighed, knowing deep down that this was a path he didn't wish his nephew to go down.
"Or it's just the celestial lights. We've been down this road before, Prince Zuko. I don't want you to get too excited over nothing. Please, sit. Why don't you enjoy a cup of calming Jasmine tea?" He said, gesturing towards the other seat at the small table.
"I don't need any calming tea! I need to capture the Avatar! Helmsman, head a course for the light!" Zuko roared.
"I'm willing to bet your brother wouldn't act so rationally." Iroh spoke softly so that no one else could hear.
This affected Zuko more than he imagined it would.
"Well he isn't here!"
Iroh grimaced, wondering what he should say.
"Zuko, all I'm saying is that you should look at this situation with level head. Was it not you who told me how your brother would tell you about strategies?" Iroh tried to reason.
"That was just a game!" Zuko came close to releasing flames from his hands but caught himself.
The two remained silent for a while, the cold air attempting to break thought he layers of clothing under Zuko's armour.
"You're right," Zuko said after a while, "I'll keep a level head, but this time I'm certain that this is the Avatar."
Iroh nodded in response but still couldn't help feeling down. He glanced at the cup of tea on the small table, wishing he could just drink his sorrows away. Unfortunately fate wasn't that generous. Deciding that he didn't have the heart to finish his game Iroh gulped down the remaining tea in his cup and stood up, deciding that an hour spent meditating would help calm his nerves. He spared one last glance towards his nephew, who still stared towards the light source, and sighed before stepping into the bowels of the ship.
The next day was so eventful yet passed by almost too quickly.
Zuko had never expected the Avatar to be a young child. At first it had raised his hopes, the boy could clearly airbend yet didn't display any other bending capabilities. Without a doubt there were no other Air Nomads left alive, the previous Fire Lords had made sure of that. For the first time in two years Zuko felt at ease but he wouldn't show it, not until he handed the boy to his father personally. Of course it wasn't meant to be as the boy escaped with the aid of two water tribe siblings and a giant flying bison.
Iroh sipped his tea as he tried to determine what way he would console his nephew. He had already stated that the Avatar was just a boy, only for Zuko to state he wouldn't underestimate him. Iroh wanted to scoff at the irony. Sure the boy was just a child but when his thoughts drifted to Tadashi and to a greater extent Azula he knew that those words he spoke had little weight behind them. Iroh was brought away from his thoughts when one of the men on-board the ship told him that Zuko asked for his presence. He could guess that Zuko didn't ask but order, not that he'd let such a small detail bother him.
The outside air was much warmer, although they were still in the southern parts of the Earth Kingdom, it was better than the south pole. Iroh had been following Zuko down the ramp that they had set up, the ship had been barely able to come into port, no doubt many would be secretly cheering at the state of a Fire Nation ship within occupied territory.
"Uncle, I want the repairs made as quickly as possible. I don't want to stay too long and risk losing his trail." Zuko sounded annoyed as he spoke.
"You mean the Avatar?" Iroh asked, half lost in his thoughts.
"Don't mention his name on these docks!" Zuko waved his arms about like a child, "Once word gets out that he's alive, every firebender will be out looking for him, and I don't want anyone getting in the way!"
"Getting in the way of what, Prince Zuko?"
The man that asked looked smug as he walked towards the duo with his arms behind his back. His armour seemed freshly polished which contrasted quite oddly against the unruly sideburns he kept.
"Lieutenant Zhao." Iroh simply stated.
"Actually it's commander now. General Iroh, the great hero of our nation." Iroh could almost see the sarcasm drip from his words yet didn't respond in kind.
"I'm a Retired general now." Iroh spoke with a soft smile, as if he was reminiscing about the past."
"I see," Zhao nodded sharply, the smug grin on his face never faltering. "The Fire Lord's brother and son are welcome guests anytime. What brings you to my harbour?"
Iroh turned slightly as pointed towards the ship which looked quite unsightly. He didn't think another word needed to be said yet spoke anyway.
"We're here for repairs."
"That's quite a bit of damage." Zhao tilted his head slightly, finding pleasure from the panicked look on Zuko's face.
"Yes." Zuko spoke quickly, holding his finger up. "You wouldn't believe what happened Uncle! Tell Commander Zhao what happened."
Zuko glanced at his uncle, and gestured at Zhao angrily, hoping his uncle would catch on quickly.
"Yes. I will do that." Iroh spoke nervously, "It was incredible! What? Did we crash or something?"
Zuko almost slapped his forehead in disbelief. He was about to answer in kind when he thought back to something his brother had once said and instantly calmed as he spoke.
"Yes! We crashed right into an Earth Kingdom ship during the night! Fortunately none of my men were heavily injured, but some are still suffering from the cold."
"Cold?" Zhao questioned sceptically.
"Yes, some fell into the sea when the ships collided. You should know how cold the seas can be here, commander?" Zuko challenged.
Zhao seemingly didn't notice as he turned to Iroh and spoke, "I can't wait to hear every little detail. You'll stay for a drink, right?"
"No, we have to go." Zuko tried to act dismissively and turn around but Iroh stopped him.
"Prince Zuko, show Commander Zhao your respect. We would be honoured to join you. Do you have any ginseng tea? It's my favourite." Iroh smiled towards Zhao who grinned almost maliciously.
"Of course," Zhao turned and walked away, followed by his two guests.
The three walked through the occupied part of harbour, banners of the Fire Nation placed about haphazardly. Iroh noticed how awkward the mood seemed so attempted to alleviate the tension slightly.
"I must say, commander in two years is quite the achievement. How did that happen?" Iroh asked Zhao who almost seemed pleased to have been asked that question.
"Yes indeed, it was quite the speedy promotion. In fact that day two years ago was the day I was meant to be promoted to Captain." Iroh winced as Zhao mentioned that particular day.
For Zhao, he had intended on using any and all opportunities to put down Zuko, laughing inwardly as he noticed the scowl grow on Zuko's face.
"You were meant to be promoted, what happened?" Iroh asked, putting more emphasis on the word 'meant'.
For the first time Zhao's smug grin faltered but he didn't let his guests see it.
"Yes, due to some unseen circumstances I wasn't promoted that day, but the week after." Zhao said dismissively.
"Ahh, I do remember hearing that you fought with Prince Tadashi that day but wasn't there to see anything. With everything that happened I never got to hear the results of that fight, how did it go?"
Zhao subconsciously rubbed his neck, muttering something incomprehensible to his guests.
"What was that?" Iroh asked, glancing at Zuko who tried to stifle his laughter.
"Nothing!" Zhao spoke with harshly. "All that you need to know is that a few weeks ago I was promoted to Commander for my actions with the subjection of ports like this one we're walking on."
"I see," Iroh spoke whimsically.
The tree continued to walk, Zuko more content then before but still unhappy with the situation. His thoughts drifted to Azula and Tadashi, he wondered what they were doing and whether they were thinking of him. The most he had heard were rumours that Tadashi had also left the Fire Nation for different reasons to his own but nothing concrete reached his ears. Iroh seemed to pick up on the boys thoughts yet didn't speak, deciding that such a topic would only help to push Zuko down the wrong path if approached in the wrong way.
"The Earth Kingdom navy is non-existent, their forces pushed back completely from the waters whilst the Water Tribe savages are nothing but a mere pest. We've taken over almost every major port whilst our army destroys the Earth Kingdom towards Omashu and Ba Sing Se, the Fire Lord has also commissioned a super weapon to be constructed, one that will take down the great wall and serve as irrefutable proof that the Fire Nation can't be beat, although that much was obvious already. We've already reached an impasse with the Norther Water Tribe, but they have nothing we need so by the year's end, the Earth Kingdom capital will be under our rule. The Fire Lord will finally claim victory in this war." Zhao sounded quite proud as he finished speaking.
"If my father thinks the rest of the world will follow him willingly, then he is a fool!" Zuko instantly retorted.
"Two years at sea have done little to temper your tongue. So, how is your search for the Avatar going?" Zhao asked Zuko.
At that moment Iroh had knocked over the weapons display that he had been admiring. The noise was enough to distract everyone, including the commander who scowled towards Iroh.
"That was my fault entirely." Iroh spoke awkwardly.
"We haven't found him yet." Zuko spoke aggressively, prompting a smirk for Zhao.
"Did you really expect to? The Avatar died a hundred years ago." Zhao glared at Zuko, "Along with the rest of the airbenders."
Zuko seemed to sigh, glad to hear that until Zhao's face suddenly turned malicious.
"Unless you have found some evidence that the Avatar is alive?" he asked, staring intently at the boy.
"No. Nothing" Zuko replied.
Zhao rose from his seat and shook his head in disbelief, taking the tone of a disappointed parent.
"Prince Zuko, the Avatar is the only one who can stop the Fire Nation from winning this war. If you have an ounce of loyalty left, you'll tell me what you found."
Zuko wanted to panic, this was one of those worst case scenarios that he thought of all the time. He looked back at Zhao and tried to reply calmly but grimaced as his tone sounded even more aggressive.
"I haven't found anything. It's like you said. The Avatar probably died a long time ago." He got up, gesturing towards his uncle. "Come on, Uncle, we're going."
Zuko approached the door but was quickly stooped by the two guards who blocked his path with their spears. Just then another guard entered the room and walked towards Zhao, he quickly saluted before giving his report.
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"Commander Zhao, we interrogated the crew as you instructed. They confirmed Prince Zuko had the Avatar in custody, but let him escape."
Zhao was absolutely delighted, having caught Zuko in the midst of his lie. "Now remind me, how, exactly, was your ship damaged?" He leaned over his shoulder with an evil smirk.
----------------------------------------
Zuko was quickly losing his patience. He was sat in-between two of Zhao's guards and they wouldn't let him move.
"So a twelve-year-old boy bested you and your firebenders. You're more pathetic than I thought." Zhao sneered at Zuko, having interrogated the boy for every detail regarding the Avatar and his escape.
"I underestimated him once, but it will not happen again!" Zuko shouted angrily before a realisation came to him, "Shouldn't I say the same thing to you anyway?"
Zhao almost lunged towards the smirking Zuko before regaining his composure and narrowing his eyes at the boy. "
No, it will not. Because you won't have a second chance." Zhao watched intently, waiting for the shock on Zuko's face.
"Commander Zhao, I've been hunting the Avatar for two years and I-" Zuko complained, clearly annoyed but was cut off by Zhao who suddenly shouted.
"And you failed!" he walked up to Zuko to emphasise his point, "Capturing the Avatar is too important to leave in a teenager's hands. He's mine now."
Zuko didn't hesitate to lunge towards Zhao but was held off by the two guards which flanked him.
"Keep them here." Zhao stated, walking out the room feeling a lot more satisfied.
He knew that the Avatar being alive may be a concern for the Fire Nation but was an opportunity to gain power within the Fire Nation without the likes of Military Intelligence from sticking their noses. He inwardly cursed that group which was led by the boy who burned his throat. Ever since his last promotion the Intelligence Unit had organised itself greatly, one smaller group situated around the Fire Nation itself focusing on internal affairs and the other that grabbed intel for the army and navy, even coming themselves to help subjugate an important military base. Zhao knew he would need to act quietly to avoid losing this opportunity, especially if there was a possibility of both brothers meeting each other.
Zhao walked up to a man and looked at him, uncertain whether he recognised him.
"Do I know you?" he asked, raising one of his brows.
"Commander Zhao, I am a recent transfer. Was sent by the brass to gain navy experience from one of the best units." The man replied.
Zhao smirked, clearly satisfied with the answer.
"I see, well I'm sure you'll learn a lot, especially as we're hunting the biggest prize of all."
"Sir?" the soldier questioned.
"The Avatar. I want a search party ready in 10 minutes."
The soldier quickly saluted and ran off to pass Zhao's orders along, leaving the commander to walk back with satisfaction. What he didn't know was that the soldier had made a quick stop on his way to the Captain, writing down an encoded message into a scroll before sending it by his personal messenger bird. Creatures like those were quite expensive and it was uncommon to see the average citizen carrying one, in fact usage of those birds were banned outside of the Fire Nation. The only people allowed to own these birds were commanders and generals. Of course an exception was created for Military Intelligence units, including solo operatives who busied themselves tracking banished princes.
As Zhao walked back into the room where Iroh and Zuko were being kept he remained stoic, a vast contrast to the smugness he showed not too long ago.
"My search party is ready. Once I'm out to sea, my guards will escort you back to your ship and you'll be free to go."
"Why? Are you worried I'm going to try and stop you?" Zuko quickly challenged.
"You? Stop me? Impossible." Zhao laughed, delighted that he'd have another chance to put down the banished prince.
"Don't underestimate me Zhao! I will capture the Avatar before you!" Zuko got up angrily, pointing at Zhao.
Iroh sensed his nephew's anger and tried to calm him down to no avail.
"You can't compete with me. I have hundreds of war ships under my command and you? You're just a banished prince. No home, no allies. Your own father doesn't even want you."
Zuko immediately knew the last statement was meant to push him into doing something stupid but his rage still took over.
"You're wrong! Once I deliver the Avatar to my father he will welcome me home with honour, and restore my rightful place on the throne!" Zuko retorted.
"If your father really wanted you home, he would have let you return by now, Avatar or no Avatar. But in his eyes you are a failure and a disgrace to the Fire Nation. Of course you probably always were a failure."
"That's not true."
"You have the scar to prove it."
Within a second Zuko had squared up to Zhao with hate filled eyes.
"Maybe you'd like one to match! Oh wait, you already have one!" Zuko taunted maliciously.
"Is that a challenge?" Zhao asked, trying to hide the fact that he was annoyed.
"An Agni Kai. At sunset." Zuko said with finality.
"Very well. It's a shame your father won't be here to watch me humiliate you. I guess your uncle will do. I don't make the same mistake twice." Zhao spoke before walking away.
"Neither do I…" Zuko murmured, glaring in Zhao's direction.
"Prince Zuko, have you forgotten what happened last time you duelled a master?" Iroh asked, disappointed that the boy would do something so foolish.
"I will never forget." Zuko scowled, looking away from the tent opening. "But I can do it, Tadashi did so why can't I?"
Iroh sighed, placing one hand on Zuko's tense shoulder before speaking again.
"Your brother didn't win an Agni Kai, he simply fought an enraged Lieutenant and used tricks to get the advantage over him. In a straight up fight your brother would lose."
"And you think I would too?" Zuko asked almost horrified.
"No, that was two years ago. Since then I bet your brother has grown much stronger, just like you have. It won't be easy but it's possible."
Zuko calmed slightly, the answer was good enough for him.
The port that the Agni Kai took place in had belong to the Fire Nation so long that an Agni Kai arena was built. Of course thing honour was only bestowed among the place because for decades the Fire Nation had been using this port as the primary relay point for naval warfare in the southern regions of the Earth Kingdom and against the Southern Water Tribe.
The arena itself was rather simple and was ready to use immediately but according to mandate set the combatants needed to wait till sunset. Zuko followed the motions that he had repeated two years ago but this time he refused to back down.
Iroh stood on the side-lines watching carefully, unaware of the guards that were peeking by the entrance.
"Remember your firebending basics, Prince Zuko. They are your greatest weapons." He spoke calmly, grateful that his voice didn't reflect his concern.
"I refuse to let him win." Zuko murmured to himself.
"This will be over quickly." Zhao found himself saying, attempting to boost his confidence further.
As a large gong sounded the fight began. Unbeknownst to the two fighting, several guards were hiding in the shadows, taking bets as to who would win the duel. Of course this sort of activity was heavily frowned upon but that didn't stop those who whispered to themselves in delight as Zuko throws the first blast of fire, a ferocious flame that would normally burn anything it touched. But Zhao was displaying his competence as a man who learned under a master as he avoided blast after blast, using tricks to move the fire around him and get closer to Zuko who only seemed to get more and more frustrated. The prince's next attack was quickly cut off by Zhao as he pressed further, managing to knock the boy over.
"Basics, Zuko! Break his root!" Iroh shouted words of encouragement to his nephew.
Zuko seemed to freeze for a moment, his mind going blank as thoughts of Tadashi and the game of Shogi they played went through his mind. Zhao used this opportunity to throw a large blast of fire at Zuko but before it could reach the prince he seemed to react with an inhuman sense of timing and avoid the blast. He used simple steps, building up his defence with small and quick movements before immediately counter attacking. The change in the boy startled Zhao who stumbled backwards in shock and attempted to block the fire before jumping back as a last ditch effort. This initially worked until one blast, more ferocious than the others, knocked him over leaving a nasty sear on Zhao's shoulders.
"That makes two scars on the commander." One of the soldiers whispered.
"Yea, all we need now is for the third child to add the last one." Another soldier jokes.
One of the soldiers who was watching along smirked and left to quickly make his report before anyone could question what he was doing.
"Do it!" Zhao glared at Zuko, clearly enraged that he had lost.
For once Zuko didn't even spare Zhao a glance, he was much too calm and it unnerved him. It was as if Tadashi or Azula had taken over his body for the second part of the fight, but he knew it was him who had beaten Zhao.
"Next time you get in my way, I promise, I won't hold back." Zuko stated, sparing Zhao a brief glance before walking off.
The rage quickly built up within Zhao and he lunged to attack with his foot, but before his flames could properly leave his body Iroh had quickly reached Zhao and stifled the flames, throwing the commander backwards. Before Zuko could retaliate Iroh stopped him.
"No, Prince Zuko. Do not taint your victory." He nodded towards Zuko before turning to Zhao. "So this is how the great Commander Zhao acts in defeat? Disgraceful. Even in exile, my nephew is more honourable than you. Thanks again for the tea. It was delicious."
Iroh turned and left without another word, closely followed by his nephew. The soldiers who had been watching quickly sneaked off, knowing that getting caught by their commander in this situation would be dire, more so for the ones that bet against Zhao and won.
Before Iroh could reach the entrance to the arena Zuko stopped his uncle who looked at his nephew, slightly amused.
"Did you really mean that, Uncle?" he asked softly.
"Of course. I told you ginseng tea is my favourite." He answered whimsically.
Zuko chuckled slightly, in greater spirits than when he entered, following Iroh as the duo made their way to their now repaired ship.
As the two stepped onto the boat Lieutenant Jee saluted in greetings, as business like as ever.
"Repairs are finished and we've picked up one passenger, claims he's working for intelligence."
"Oh?" Iroh answered slightly surprised.
"What's that?" Zuko asked, surprising Jee with his upbeat attitude.
"It's a division set up by your brother." Iroh turned to Zuko as Jee nodded in agreement.
Zuko thought back to how his brother's words and past actions helped him.
"Where's he going?" Zuko asked.
"Kyoshi Island." Lieutenant Gee replied.